Playtime in Paris: Modern French Dining in the 10th Arrondissement

March 9, 2012  by Lindsey Tramuta

To celebrate Valentine’s Day four years ago, I dined at Le Grand Colbert, the restaurant made famous by Diane Keaton and her roast chicken in the film Something’s Gotta Give. For me, it will forever be famous for far different reasons. Over clangorous dining room voices and crumb-laden plates, my husband proposed to me.

The American couple seated next to us gushed as I beamed with joy and threw my arms around my new fiancé. The fullness of the moment was heightened by the Belle Epoque backdrop and the tuxedoed waiters who dashed back and forth with alacrity between the kitchen and the dining room, forging the surreal sensation of being the stars on a Hollywood film set. Unbearably prosaic but perfectly appropriate for the moment.

Since then, we’ve maintained the tradition of dining out on Valentine’s Day. Some of our choices have been memorable, some not even worth mentioning. We flirted with the idea of returning to Le Grand Colbert last month to relive our engagement but given the caliber of restaurants that have opened over the last four years, we couldn’t be bothered with average food and contrived theatrics, no matter how emotionally significant.

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Cul de Poule — dining at the rue des Martyrs’ Hen’s Arse.

July 9, 2009  by Erica Berman

Photo by JasonW

Text by Geneviève Sandifer

If there’s one thing I think New York has perfected over Paris, it’s the art of the casual, delicious and reasonably inventive bistro meal. Most Americans first landing in France would disagree heartily, but after a life spent in Paris eating mediocre croque-monsieurs and room temperature frites with my stringy bavettes aux echalottes, I continue to marvel at New York restaurateurs’ ability to churn out adventurous and generally decent options for the downtown sidewalk-er.

When I first heard of Cul de Poule, I thought that I had found the modern French equivalent of New York’s neo-café/brasserie. Most tell-tale signs include: trendy staff playing indie rock on the stereo (check) bad acoustics (check), cramped, mismatched furniture (check), and a short but seriously intriguing hand-written menu (check) that remixed French standards (duck confit, roasted lamb) with fresh, playful flavors and combinations – worth a shot, but probably more hype than substance. Continue Reading »

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